Finally! An alternative to sitting in a time-consuming, all theory classroom to earn credits for your real estate license renewal hours. Sounds promising, right?
Does this sound familiar? You schedule the in-person course in advance, it's FREE at your local association.2-3 days before the class you meet a great prospect and guess what? They can only meet you during class time! So you cancel, and after securing your next client you go online to look for the next available course. Gas is outrageous, classes offered are limited, and your license expiration date is approaching. What's an agent to do? Sign up for those online courses! Easy, right? Not so fast! Read this review before you jump on that train!
I am a virtual assistant. This means I spend more time on the computer in one day than most Realtors spend in one week! I learn new things online EVERY day. New techniques. New short cuts. New software. So online continuing ed - no problem, right? WRONG. This review is meant to save you lots of wasted energy and frustration. Here are my recommendations for you:
- Do not schedule an on-line course with dry content where the laws/theories do not match reality in your profession. Agency. Real Estate Legal Issues. Commissioners Standards. Like all education, there is the text book version, and there is the real life experience. The longer you've been working in Real Estate, the LESS you know about the textbook version! An on-line course in these subjects will frustrate and confuse you. Stick with the live in-person courses so that you can listen to them say 'Highlight this' and 'Highlight that' as it will be on the test!
- Be aware: Courses are broken down into sections, and in order for the course providers to be successful, they have to show that Realtors PASS their tests. How do they do this? Break the course up into sections with quizzes. Sections can last from 45 minutes to an hour. Then the quiz. Don't get an acceptable score on the quiz? GONG. Start over. Another 45 minutes. Sure, you may be able to switch screens faster, but you are essentially repeating information that you already went over, and this type of proficiency is NOT needed on the exam at the end of the course!
- MORE time consuming than the actual in-person class. Let's face it, you're a Realtor. You like action. Movement. A desk job is not your thing. Apply this to your renewal - if you think it's difficult to sit for 3 hours in a classroom, try sitting at your PC for 3 hours straight to ace quizzes, no one is bringing real life experience to the forum, no one is telling you what to highlight and know for the exam. It takes much longer than the 3 hours!! If you must take online renewal courses, only take Disclosures, Contract Law, or General Courses that you already have a broad subject knowledge; these subjects are closest to the 'real deal' out in the marketplace.
- Don't plan on cramming 'last minute' on-line, you will not make it. The best way to ensure you aren't going to wait until the last possible minute to earn your credits is to look into earning a designation, and work toward that. Designations take focus and time, and if you dedicate yourself to those courses, it will be worthwhile. Much more so than completing a quiz all by yourself only to learn that you have to start WAY at the beginning again!
There are GREAT on-line continuing ed course providers, and this post is not meant as a negative review to categorize everyone together. Their customer service is FAST. They know your industry. BUT it's not the optimum way to get those hours. Very similar to sending a text message instead of a phone call; very impersonal, fast, and lacking in excitement or enjoyment. My vote is GO TO CLASS! Meet your peer Realtors, laugh and have fun! Sitting at home alone on your computer may sound cool at first, but it's no way to take class that requires so much new information.
Comments(8)